This invention relates to a cable attachment and to a method of assembling the cable attachment.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,135,514 granted to Thomas Joseph Kowalewski et al Oct. 24, 2000 discloses an automotive vehicle release mechanism for a storage compartment latch. The latch has a pivotally mounted fork bolt and a pivotally mounted detent member that holds the fork bolt in an engaged position. The detent member is pivoted away from the fork bolt to release the fork bolt and allow the compartment lid to be opened. The detent member is normally pivoted by an internal cam that is operated by a key lock cylinder accessible from the compartment exterior. However, the detent member can also be pivoted by pulling a cable inside the storage compartment that is attached to the detent member. The cable is attached to the detent member by a pin on an arm of the detent member that extends through a slot of a ring shaped link that is attached to the end of the cable. This provides a lost motion connection so that the detent member can be pivoted by the internal cam without disturbing the cable.
This invention provides a lost motion cable attachment that is simple, efficient and easy to assemble.
The cable attachment of the invention comprises an end portion of a member and a end length of cable that has a ferrule attached to it. The member has an open ended loading slot that extends into the end portion of the member to an inner end forming separate cantilevered fingers on opposite sides of the loading slot. The loading slot spans the separate fingers to form openings between the fingers at opposite sides of the end portion. The end portion of the member also has a retaining slot that is transverse to the loading slot with the loading slot having an inner end portion and the retaining slot having an outer end portion that overlaps the inner end portion of the loading slot. The end portion of the member further includes a first transition slot that extends from one of the opposite sides of the end portion through one of the fingers into the inner end portion of the loading slot and the overlapping outer end portion of the retaining slot and a second transition slot that extends from another of the opposite sides of the end portion through another of the fingers into the inner end portion of the loading slot and the overlapping outer end portion of the retaining slot. The end length of cable extends through the retaining slot so that the ferrule is engageable with a surface of the end portion adjacent the retaining slot for moving the member. The end length of the cable being moveable axially in the retaining slot forms a lost motion attachment with the end portion of the member.
The end length of cable is loaded into the retaining slot by inserting the end length of cable transversely through the loading slot to the transition slots, then rotating the end length in planar fashion into the transition slots and then inserting the end length of cable transversely into the retaining slot.
The retaining slot may be linear with the transition slots inhibiting escape of the cable transversely from the retaining slot. However, the retaining slot is preferably shaped to further inhibit escape of the cable transverse to its axis. For example, the outer end portion and the inner end portion of the retaining slot can be linear while the intermediate portion is curved to inhibit movement of the cable transversely in the retaining slot from the linear inner end portion to the linear outer end portion.